


Let's Meet Again

by lilyruby



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Urban Fantasy, Death, Fantasy, Ghost Hunters, Ghosts, Healing, High School, Inspired by Goblin and Hotel Del Luna, Lee Jeno-centric, M/M, Past Character Death, Trauma, Urban Fantasy, donghyuck is a ghost hunter, jaemin is a ghost, jeno can see ghosts
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-26
Updated: 2020-09-26
Packaged: 2021-03-06 14:27:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 15,342
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26120380
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lilyruby/pseuds/lilyruby
Summary: Donghyuck clasped his hands together in all seriousness. "I'm a ghost hunter,""A ghost- what?" Jeno blurted out loud."A ghost hunter," Donghyuck repeated, this time more quietly. "I've been punished to 500 years of sending away 10 000 evil ghosts-" Donghyuck's explanation was interrupted by Jeno slurping his milkshake loudly."Can you stop that? Were you even listening?" Donghyuck scolded him."Sorry, I lost you at ghost hunter. You were saying?" Jeno grinned from ear to ear."Give me that."
Relationships: Lee Donghyuck | Haechan/Lee Jeno
Comments: 5
Kudos: 29





	1. First Sight

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! This is my first fic so I hope you enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it. I love kdramas so this fic is sort of an inspiration from Hotel Del Luna X Goblin so if you're familiar you might see some references. Also beware because later on it's gonna get darker but I'll make sure to add warnings at the start of each chapter. I hope you enjoy!

_“Winner Winner Chicken Dinner!”_

Donghyuck fist-pumped the air. _“And another win goes to player Lee Donghyuck!”_ Donghyuck exclaimed to himself with an overdramatic commentator voice. A small celebratory dance accompanied his celebration of victory.

Donghyuck took off his headset and set it down on the table. He leaned back in his chair and stretched his arms high in the air then cracked his knuckles. He kicked the leg of the table lightly, allowing the chair to roll backwards slightly as he swivelled around in his comfortable gamer chair. A small smile of triumph formed on his lips. His small apartment was dark, curtains drawn as the only source of light came from the screen of his desktop computer.

“That was child’s play.”

He had just solved his latest case yesterday so he decided to celebrate by spending an unhealthy amount of hours sitting in his expensive chair playing his favourite online game. Not that he cared for his health anyway, he was already dead. Finding malevolent ghosts and solving their issues was never easy. Ghosts would steer clear of him, as they often mistook him for a grim reaper, out to send them back to the afterlife. The revengeful ones would even more so avoid him, thinking that he would hinder them from solving their grudges, when he was there to do the opposite. 

He glanced down at his watch to check the time, 12:30, it read. Time for lunch. One of his favourite moments of still being in this world, eating. Although he was never hungry and didn’t have the need to consume any food, his amazing taste buds were still functional and he used them fully to the maximum. He liked the feeling of chewing and tasting food, it was one of the few things that gave him joy ever since and it made him feel somewhat alive. It also filled the emptiness hidden inside him. He switched off his computer and placed his precious headset back on its designated stand on the table. 

Donghyuck got up to open the curtains to his apartment. He had to shield his eyes from the sudden influx of sunlight pouring in and blinding him. His apartment wasn't exactly neat and tidy, nor was it in complete disarray. It was more of controlled chaos, with a few nits and bits spread out, but not where they’re not supposed to be. He walked to his closet and opened it to change into a new set of clean clothes. He was already thinking of his lunch menu. _Maybe I should try out that new restaurant. I heard they have killer shrimp noodles there._

“Ahem,” a cough resounded throughout the apartment.

“Fuck!” Donghyuck jumped slightly, startled by the sudden intrusion.

He noticed a figure wearing an all-black suit complete with a ridiculous top hat leaning against his doorway. His hands were folded across his chest and he looked at Donghyuck, his mouth formed in a grim line. Still, he managed to pull off that look.

Donghyuck sighed a breath of relief. “You know you could have knocked first before you barge in like that Doyoung,” ignoring the already familiar person, Donghyuck continued going through his closet and threw out a few pieces of clothing, still deciding on what to wear.

“Well I did knock, not that you heard me with the deafening volume in that blasted headset of yours,” Doyoung plopped himself onto the sofa uninvitedly, his fingers started fiddling with the loose strings coming from the fabric of the sofa. He was already familiar with the place, having been there to pick up reports when Donghyuck didn’t send them punctually on the due date often too many times.

“Okay, what do you want Doyoung? And what’s up with your get-up anyway? You look like you’re headed to a funeral.” Donghyuck paused on his outfit searching and looked at Doyoung. “Oh wait, you dress for a funeral _every day_.”

“Haha, very funny Donghyuck. In fact, there’s a very special occasion today. One of the grim reapers had just completed their service and is ready to move on to their next life, so we threw him a congratulations and farewell party.” Doyoung replied, a hint of joy in his tone. He too must be waiting for the time when it would be his turn to move on.

“Okay, and that explains why you’re here.” Donghyuck replied mockingly.

Doyoung got up and started walking around Donghyuck’s apartment, his hands clasped behind him as he scrutinized the small knick-knacks spread around the apartment. There were a few candy wrappers crumpled on one corner, a figurine and a stack of papers on another corner of the desk. The walls were empty save for a few posters of Michael Jackson, Donghyuck’s favourite singer, taped messily around one corner of the room.

“Actually, I came for this,” Doyoung stopped by the desk and took the first sheet of paper from the stack. He raised it to show Donghyuck. On the piece of paper was a report on the latest solved case that Donghyuck had yet to complete.

“I see that you still haven’t finished yet,” a stern look on his face, his lips forming a flat line.

Donghyuck who was uneased at first immediately loosened his shoulders. He walked next to Donghyuck and slinged his arms around Doyoung’s shoulders. 

“Relax, I still have a lot of time left. I’ll have it sent to you by tomorrow. I promise.” A lax smile on his face.

Doyoung shifted to remove Donghyuck’s arm from his shoulder and started pacing the apartment. If it wasn’t Doyoung, Donghyuck would have been hurt by that action, except that he had already known Doyoung since forever and was already accustomed to Doyoung’s obvious loathing of physical contact. “It’s not just that Donghyuck, what happened to you? You used to solve more than two cases per month.” 

“I know, progress has been slow lately. But hey, look on the bright side will you? I just solved one yesterday.” Donghyuck’s face beamed with pride.

“In four months!” Doyoung cried, frustration evident in his voice. “What happened to you who wanted to move on so quickly? You even went on a case spree finding ghosts after you were assigned this ‘job’.” Doyoung gestured his fingers in the air at the word ‘ _job_ ’. It was more of a punishment, really. For something Donghyuck couldn’t quite remember. “Don’t you want to move on to your next life?” This time worry could be heard in Doyoung’s tone.

“I do, but-” Donghyuck trailed off. He was at a loss of words at the moment. _What did he really want anyway?_

“Nah I don’t know Doyoung. I don’t think I’m ready to leave yet. I only need a few cases to solve left. Plus I still have a lot of time remaining.” Donghyuck sat on the side of his bed and hugged his beloved plushie. He was really taking it easy. He was going to enjoy what little time he still had left in this world.

“Well about that-” Doyoung walked to the jumble of posters of the wall and began uncovering a few of them. Donghyuck gasped as he heard the sound of paper being ripped when removed quickly.

“No! Not my precious posters!” He dropped the plushie and ran to Doyoung’s side, immediately swatting his hands from ripping off any more posters. He made a hissing sound as Doyoung retracted his hands in surrender. Donghyuck collected all the removed posters and placed them carefully on his desk.

“Ugh, I worked so hard to get them,” Donghyuck whined as he shot daggers at Doyoung.

“Sorry,” Doyoung replied although there was no sincerity in his words.

Beneath the clutter of posters was a clock hanging on the wall, the _cursed clock_ , as Donghyuck prefers to call it. It didn’t display any time but instead it was more of a countdown clock. Counting the time Donghyuck has left before his punishment contract ends and the number of cases he had solved. He had seen the clock go through several evolutions. From markings on a piece of wood, to calligraphic tallies, to manual writing boards, and now a digital clock. 

Donghyuck had hidden the clock underneath the posters as he didn’t know since when, but he had grown a dislike of looking at the cursed clock. When he first received the clock from Doyoung, it gave him strength and determination to quickly end his contract of solving 10,000 cases in 500 years. But in the past few years, he lost his motivation on solving the cases and decided to enjoy more of what his current life had to offer. 500 years was a lot of time and he had already solved most of the cases during his peak moment. Maybe he could delay the last few cases to solve in his last remaining year. 

A glance at the clock was all it took to put Donghyuck in a panic frenzy. One month remaining with 9995 cases solved. 

“Shit. You’ve got to be kidding me.”

“I kid you not.” 

Donghyuck turned to face Doyoung with a look of distraught on his face.

“Hyung, you’ve got to help me. I can’t send away five ghosts in one month. That’s too many. Can’t you ask for an extension from your higher-ups. Please? For me?” Donghyuck pleaded. This time he was on his knees, holding on tight to Doyoung’s legs. So much for a drama king.

“Oh so it’s only now when you call me hyung. You know I can’t do that, I already requested an extension for you when they initially gave you 300 years.” Doyoung tried shaking off Donghyuck in a futile attempt, his grasp was too tight. Doyoung sighed.

“What happens if I don’t finish by the deadline?” Donghyuck released his hold of Doyoung’s leg and was now curled up on the floor.

“You already know the answer Donghyuck. I’ll have to send you off to hell myself.” Doyoung crouched down and patted Donghyuck’s back.

“I’m truly sorry I couldn’t notify you earlier. I was busy sending off other spirits myself.” Doyoung felt guilty. But he had a punishment of his own to handle too.

“Then what am I supposed to do?” Donghyuck whined. Five spirits, in one month? How could he solve that many cases in one month? The most he solved in one month was three cases. And not to mention how difficult it was to convince evil ghosts to let him help.

“I don’t know, maybe go back to early motivated Donghyuck who wanted to move on to the next life pretty soon?” Doyoung glanced down on his wrist to check his watch.

“I’ve got to go Donghyuck, someone just died and I’ll have to attend to them. You’ll have to figure that out on your own.” 

And with one last look of pity, Doyoung disappeared into thin air. 

Donghyuck sprawled himself on the floor. He really didn’t want to go to hell. He guessed that he had no choice but to hunt down five more evil ghosts and send them off to the afterlife. It wasn’t long since he was wallowing in sorrow when he thought of food. Oh, but first, food. Yes, nothing could beat his love for food. If anything could cheer him up, it would be food. 

He got up and walked towards his closet, rummaging through what clothes he had. Today was a sorrowful day, he thought. A day of bad news. So he decided to dress up like Doyoung. He put on his best black suit, complete with a matching black fedora hat, saved for occasions like these or when he decided to cosplay as a grim reaper. 

Before leaving, he checked himself through the full length mirror in the corner of his room. _Wait, I look too much like Doyoung. Too depressing_. He needed something that could lighten him up a bit. With a snap of his fingers, a white feather appeared on his hat. Perfect. White, the colour of light and hope. Maybe if he was lucky enough he would stumble upon an evil ghost today.

And with one last look, he left his apartment for that restaurant he searched earlier.

*

“So are you excited for your first day of high school?” Jaemin asked Jeno from the balcony. He was lying on the edge of the railing facing Jeno, a Cheshire-like smile plastered across his face. Jeno didn’t know how he did it, but he did it alright. Jaemin was a ghost after all.

“Excited my ass. I’ll just be glad if I survive a day without seeing any ghosts.” Jeno continued stuffing his backpack with his school supplies. Notebook, check. Pencil case, check. Does he have enough pens? Ugh, no time to check, he’s already late for school.

“Hey, I’m a ghost, and you see me everyday.” Jaemin replied. 

“Yeah, but you’re an exception.”

When Jeno first moved into the condominium with his mom three years ago, Jaemin was already there. At first Jeno hated the idea of living with a ghost so he begged his mom to move houses but his mom thought he was being ridiculous. They couldn’t even afford to move anyway, his mom had just been divorced. Soon, Jeno gave up as he managed to adapt to having a ghost in his life as Jaemin didn’t turn out to be such a bad company. Sure he would show up out of the blue sometimes and surprise Jeno, but he gave him privacy and basically just lay, or float, around doing nothing. It was also nice having someone to talk to at times.

Jaemin chuckled. “Just make new friends, maybe bring them over sometime.” 

Jaemin wore a high school uniform, different from the one Jeno was wearing. He had been wearing it ever since Jeno met him. Jeno assumed he must have died in it. He had asked how Jaemin had died before, but Jaemin said he couldn’t remember clearly. He would always give excuses or shift the topic to something else whenever it was brought up in their conversations. Jeno ended up giving up later on. Jaemin would tell him when he was ready, no need to pressure him.

“Don’t expect much. They already think I’m a freak in the first place.” Jeno gritted his teeth. He still remembered when his own best friend called him a freak back in middle school after discovering that he could see ghosts. He said that he might get possessed if they continued to hang out. Ever since, rumors started to spread around and people would avoid him generally. He didn’t have the heart to tell his mom, it would only break her, so he decided to be strong on his own. It was okay, he still had Jaemin whenever he came home.

But Jeno still had a small hidden glint of hope hoping that maybe, just maybe, he would be able to turn over a new leaf in high school. Maybe he could make new friends there. If only he didn’t have the ability to see ghosts and rumours didn’t follow him around.

After double checking, he zipped his backpack and slinged it across his shoulders. 

“Bye Jaemin.” Jeno said before leaving his room.

“Bye Jeno! Have fun!” Jaemin yelled back from the balcony, his hand waving fervently. Jeno closed the door to his bedroom. 

“I’ll be going first mom, I’m already late.” Jeno hugged his mother before grabbing a sandwich to eat in class later. 

“Okay honey, just don’t be late!” His mother called after him before he closed the door shut and headed out to school.

First day of school couldn’t be that bad, right?

*

Okay, at least it didn’t go as bad as Jeno had expected. Sure there were a few ghosts on the way to school, but he was already attuned to pretending that he didn’t see them and successfully ignoring them. He passed by a class and noticed an odd looking girl sitting at the teacher’s table. He almost made eye contact with her before he broke off his gaze and hurried off to his class. Phew, he almost got caught by that one.

Jeno was only six when he realized that his mother couldn’t see things that he could. His mother would ask who he was talking to at the playground. He would also ask his mother why that person was pale and looked weird and his mother could only give a puzzled and worried look. He stopped asking those questions when he learned that it would only worry her further.

Jeno arrived at the classroom relatively early and managed to snag a window seat at the back. One of the perfect spots to avoid attention and doze off. Lucky for him, there weren’t any ghosts lingering around his classroom. He made a reminder never to go home late to avoid running into the ghost girl from the class next door.

He heaved a sigh of relief when most of his classmates were new faces he didn’t recognize and had never seen before. They chatted among themselves, excited for the first day of school. Still, none of them initiated an interaction with him. He guessed they had probably heard the rumors as they spread like wildfire. 

“Is this seat taken?” Jeno was minding his own business when a shadow loomed over him.

A boy, probably shorter than him with soft black hair stood before him. Jeno thought he was pretty cute. Evident confusion on his face, Jeno pointed his right index finger to the obviously empty seat next to him. _Here? Next to me?_ , his face read. He was surprised.

“Yes, can I sit here?” the boy repeated his sentence. He had already begun to take off his backpack from his shoulders and placed it on the table. Jeno looked around his class and noticed all of the seats were already taken. _Ah, no wonder._

Realization finally dawning upon him, Jeno immediately pulled back the chair next to him.

“Sure, yeah, why not?” He flustered.

“Thanks.” The boy put down his backpack and settled down comfortably on the chair next to him. He began to unpack his school supplies.

“I’m Huang Renjun by the way.” The boy introduced himself.

“I’m Lee Jeno,” Jeno replied.

“Hope we can become good friends this year,” The boy continued. 

In the corner of Jeno’s eyesight, he noticed his classmates looking at them from afar as they murmured between themselves.

“Sure,” he replied. Maybe there was hope for him.

*

After school, Jeno took the subway home. His day wasn't so bad, though he didn't speak much with his new deskmate. They only exchanged simple questions, such as _what subject is it now?_ or _can I borrow your pen?_ followed by a simple _yeah, sure_ then _thanks. Well it was a great start_ , he guessed. Jeno was already used to being alone that he forgot how it was when he had friends, besides Jaemin of course. He hoped he could call Renjun his friend, if Renjun allowed it. He didn't put his hopes high as he knew Renjun was bound to hear about the rumors surrounding him and was going to leave him, just like everyone else. He didn't expect much anyway.

With his favourite grey hoodie pulled up, Jeno plugged in his earphones as he scrolled down his phone, reading a web comic. He loved reading them, especially the romance/comedy genre. He wasn't a big fan of thriller or horror that much as he was already living in one. He opened a music app and played music, drowning out any background noise as he continued reading the webcomic.

After a while of reading, Jeno leaned back in his seat and closed his eyes. His eyes were strained as he forgot to bring his spectacles. Him and his bad luck. Thank God he didn’t wait a second longer after school. Otherwise, if he were a second late, the subway would have been packed like a tin of sardines and there wouldn't have been a seat left.

From the corner of his eyesight, he noticed the odd subway ghost standing at the corner of the car. She seemed lost, embraced in the fact that she was already dead and just lingering around the subway. Contrary to popular belief, ghosts weren't really ugly. They looked exactly like humans except more paler and a bit messier depending on the situation they died in. They also had a grey aura of death lingering around them. At first glance, you couldn’t even differentiate them from regular humans.

She was more of the harmless type, ones who wouldn't leave as they still had unsolved regrets. Still, it was better off to avoid eye contact with them. Those types tended to ask people like Jeno for favours like sending money to their loved ones, which Jeno despised. Usually they would bug him until they got bored of him refusing.

The ones that he definitely had to avoid were the more revengeful ones. They had died in wrongful ways and they would do anything to get their revenge, including possession of humans. They were easy to identify as they had a more ugly appearance and their aura was darker. 

Surprisingly, in Jeno's lifelong career of seeing ghosts, he had never been possessed even once, and he intended to keep it that way, although he had seen a handful of evil ghosts. 

As he looked around the subway car, what caught his eyes the most was a passenger across from him, a man clad in an all-black suit complete with a fedora hat. He downright stood out in the midst of plain casual clothed passengers, but what caught his attention the most was the bright white feather, perched on top of his hat. The feather provided a splash of colour, contrast to his dark funeral-suited clothing. 

The hat covered half of his face and only the bottom half of his face could be seen. As Jeno observed longer, he noticed his features was too soft for a man, but more of a teenager, like him. The suit fitted him so well that it made him seem more mature and at first glance you wouldn't notice that the wearer was quite young.

Another thing that left Jeno in bewilderment was that the person was reading through a newspaper. Where in this day and age of modern technology, everyone around him was busy scrolling through their smartphones. Who still reads newspapers these days? Not young people, _obviously._

Another shock of surprise came when Jeno looked around and saw no one staring at the stranger. _Umm hello? Strange white feathered fedora hat person here?_ He couldn't be the only one seeing this. Not that his imagination was wild enough anyways. Jeno rubbed his eyes in confusion. Was he too tired that he had been hallucinating things? He was sure he got an adequate amount of sleep last night.

He must have been staring for far too long when the stranger glanced up from the newspaper and made eye contact with him. He had a bemused look on his face but then he quickly looked down back at what he was reading. Jeno managed to catch sight of the stranger's face, further confirming the assumption that he was younger than he seemed. 

He saw the corner of the stranger's lips slowly turn up forming a smirk. Soon, Jeno's subway ride came to end as the train neared his stop. Before Jeno got up from his seat, the stranger stood up quickly and walked out of the train as soon as the doors opened. Jeno, not wanting to lose sight of the person, quickly followed.

He knew it was wrong stalking some random stranger, especially when said stranger dresses suspiciously, but something about him intrigued Jeno and he was curious to find out. The stranger didn't have a grey cloud of death aura surrounding him, so Jeno was sure he wasn't a ghost. But then, nobody seemed to notice the oddly dressed stranger which made Jeno wonder if he was the only one imagining it.

Jeno followed the stranger throughout the underground subway station until the stranger turned around a corner abruptly. Jeno cornered too and was met with a dead end, only to discover that the stranger had disappeared into thin air, leaving Jeno dumbfounded. He swore he saw that stranger make that turn and he wasn’t imagining it. He rubbed his eyes.

Maybe it was all an illusion because he was so exhausted after a tiring first day at school. As Jeno turned around to head for the exit, he was met with a hand slamming into the wall in front of his face, followed by the other hand behind him. Jeno's backpack leaned into the wall, the stranger had him trapped between his arms. 

The stranger's face was now in full view, revealing a boy with honey-coloured skin, with a few moles dotting his cheek adding an extra charm to his handsome features. He was slightly shorter than Jeno, his hat added to his height. The boy's face was so close to Jeno that it left little space for them to close the distance and kiss. 

The boy smelled nice, but Jeno couldn’t quite detect what he smelled like. He could probably hear Jeno's heart beating rapidly and feel Jeno's breath getting heavier.

"Seems like I've found a gem," the stranger smirked, a few teeth peeking out from the upturned corner of his mouth.

"What do you want? I'll give you my money. Just don't hurt me," Jeno squeaked. His heart felt as if it was about to burst from his chest. Who was this stranger and what did he want?

"Don't mind if I do," the stranger immediately released his hands from the wall and spread his palms towards Jeno in a receiving manner.

Jeno was confounded by the stranger's sudden action.

"Wait, I take that back. I don't have any money," Jeno gulped nervously.

The stranger pouted. "Well that's no fun," he whined. He was kind of adorable.

Jeno held his guard up as he straightened his back. He was in fact taller than this stranger, only the top hat added to his height.

"What do you want from me?" this time he pressed.

"I saw you staring at me shamelessly earlier in the train," the stranger smiled teasingly.

"I'm sorry, that was rude of me," Jeno apologized. He was caught red-handed. He knew it was inappropriate to stare at people when he himself didn't like attention.

"It's okay, I understand. Can't help it that I'm hot," the stranger waved his hand in the air, a flair of dramatics.

A scoff escaped from Jeno's mouth. "How could I not, when you're dressed like-" Jeno glanced at the stranger from head to toe before continuing, "-like that."

The stranger was unfazed. "But you don't see others staring at me now do you?"

Jeno tensed. "And why is that?" He managed to blurt out. 

"Because people can only see me if I let them, unless they have special abilities,”

The bold stranger caressed Jeno's cheek carefully as he stared into Jeno's eyes, “You can see ghosts right?” That was sudden. How did he manage to know Jeno’s deepest secret?

Jeno gulped. "But you're not a ghost," he stated. "What are you?" 

The stranger glanced down to his chest before turning away.

"You'll find out soon enough. See you tomorrow," and with that the stranger disappeared round the corner into the main walkway.

"But you don't even know-" Jeno stopped abruptly as he saw that the stranger had once again vanished into thin air, "-me."

In his place, a bright white feather floated slowly downwards, just in time for it to land in Jeno's hands. He stuffed the feather into the pocket of his bag, wondering if it was all but a dream.


	2. The Deal

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Donghyuck clasped his hands together in all seriousness. "I'm a ghost hunter,"
> 
> "A ghost- what?" Jeno blurted out loud.
> 
> "A ghost hunter," Donghyuck repeated, this time more quietly. "I've been punished to 500 years of sending away 10 000 evil ghosts-" Donghyuck's explanation was interrupted by Jeno slurping his milkshake loudly.
> 
> "Can you stop that? Were you even listening?" Donghyuck scolded him.
> 
> "Sorry, I lost you at ghost hunter. You were saying?" Jeno grinned from ear to ear.
> 
> "Give me that."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry for the late update, I just changed laptops. This chapter is a bit lengthy so I hope you enjoy!

"Donghyuck! I told you not to call me if you don't need anything!" Doyoung appeared, scorn visible on his face. Donghyuck had done it again. Doyoung regretted allowing him access to summon him whenever he wanted.

"No need to get your pants up so high, here's the report," Donghyuck fiddled the lighter between his fingers. All he had to do was light a small fire and blow it, then Doyoung would appear. It was a long time ago when Doyoung gave him the lighter, back when he was a newbie and needed help a lot. He then picked up a piece of paper from his desk and waved it in front of him. Doyoung took the report from his hands and inspected it, his face all scrunched up as he scrutinized the details.

On the piece of paper Doyoung read the first few words,

CASE NO. 9995

Written by Detective Lee Donghyuck

"Are you writing a book report or a case report? You got the format all wrong," Doyoung facepalmed. Donghyuck smiled cheekily at him while tapping his pen on the table repetitively.

"You're already on your last five cases and you still haven't gotten a single format right for 500 years," Doyoung said with a tone between despair and disappointment. He pinched the area between his eyebrows. Time and time again Doyoung had to teach him the proper format but not once had he done it perfectly, or the way Doyoung wanted it to be. There would always be a mistake, even the tiniest bit. Either Doyoung was too picky or Donghyuck was downright trying to mess with him. Doyoung was convinced it was the latter.

"And you're not even a detective. Ugh, nevermind, I give up."

"Meh, can't get the job done if you don't have fun," Donghyuck started swivelling around in his chair. He couldn’t care less on the formality of the report. As long as the message got through then it was fine to him.

"Ugh, why do I even put up with you?" Doyoung complained. He tucked the report paper in his mini briefcase. "I'm leaving. Anything else?" He was about to turn away when Donghyuck spoke.

"I think I found a solution to help speed up my progress."

Doyoung's ears perked up. He turned to face Donghyuck with his eyebrows raised, a sign for him to keep going.

“Care to elaborate?”

"I found a boy who can see ghosts," he continued. He had caught Doyoung’s attention. 

"You know how it's hard for me to catch evil spirits lately. They avoid me like the plague. My reputation among ghosts *precedes me. They're also scarce these days. But this boy I found, evil spirits _love_ him. You see, people who can see ghosts are more vulnerable and easier to possess." Donghyuck gestured his hands dramatically in the air.

"Okay, so-," Doyoung nodded. His eyebrows furrowed. He could see where this was going. Donghyuck was always up to something when he spoke passionately. 

"-So I'm going to use him as living bait. I'm not going to let them possess him of course, but I'm going to let them near enough for me to catch them and send them away," he exhibited conspicuous confidence in his words.

"Wow, brilliant idea Donghyuck! Reminds me of an incident that happened before.” Doyoung scratched his chin. “Oh! I remember, _Mark Lee_ ," he exclaimed as he clapped his hands in derision. It was not the first time Donghyuck had done something like this. Doyoung recalled Mark Lee from years ago, a person who Donghyuck had worked with prior. He too, had the ability to see ghosts.

Donghyuck frowned. “We do not talk about _that_ incident in this household,” 

Mark Lee was a great partner to Donghyuck. He was nice, friendly, and fun to hang out with. Out of the few ‘gifted’ people Donghyuck had worked with in his long career, Mark was the one who left the biggest impression on him. Or maybe that was because he was the most recent one he had worked with. Donghyuck mayhaps had allowed an evil ghost to possess him, once. But that was a long time ago. 

“Plus, we ended things in good terms,” 

But like all mortal beings, Mark Lee moved on. 

“I doubt he’ll help you easily. And how are you going to get him on board?”

"I'm going to make him an offer he can't refuse. You know what these kinds of people want the most right? They want their abilities erased. I'll offer that to him."

Doyoung scratched his head. "You know you can't do that right? Can’t you just try to convince him normally?" though the boy would most likely decline. This time his tone was more serious. But offering to erase his abilities? This was something even Doyoung couldn’t do. 

"Of course I’ll try to convince him first. That’s just my last resort. But if anything, there's got to be a way somehow. Like a final farewell wish or something. I'll figure it out later," Donghyuck waved it off. He couldn’t bother to think about it now. For now, he would just use his persuasion skills that he had honed for years to try and convince him.

"Okay, I'm not sure about the wish thing, but I'll see if I can pull some strings," Doyoung scratched his chin. "But if your genius plan doesn't work, then what?"

The expression on Donghyuck's face fell. "Well I just hope it does." There was a glint of hope in his eyes. 

*

That night, Jeno had trouble sleeping. He woke up from his sleep several times throughout the night. He would constantly dream of a young boy, clad in the traditional Korean garment, a hanbok. Looking at the quality of the fabric and the way he brought himself, Jeno could tell that the boy must have been from a prominent family. From his point of view, they were laughing and playing around a beautiful lake. But every time he would zoom in on the boy's face, his dream would cut off and he would wake up again. It wasn’t a nightmare, but he would wake up to cold sweat.

"Having trouble sleeping?" Jaemin lay in front of him, facing him. Jeno was used to Jaemin observing him while he slept. He must have been bored all this while, being a ghost and all and have nothing to do all day.

"Yeah," Jeno smiled sleepily.

"Nightmares?" Jaemin asked worriedly.

"No," Jeno shifted to a more comfortable position on his bed. "I dreamt that there was this young boy, but every time I zoom in on his face, I wake up," Jeno shared with Jaemin everything. For the past three years, Jaemin had always been a source of comfort for Jeno everytime he had any problem. He was a shoulder that Jeno could always lean on, even though not physically, but he was good at listening and comforting Jeno. Even the most boring stories entertained him. 

Jaemin bit his lower lip in thought.

"That's odd, I don't remember you ever having trouble sleeping before. You would constantly toss and turn when you have a nightmare and then you would wake up. But then you would go back to sleep just fine." Jaemin recalled. Jeno had been waking up a few times more than normal now that night. 

"That's because I've never had any trouble sleeping before. It only started tonight." Jeno was also aware of his sleeping habits. He stared at the ceiling. The vision of his dream played on the ceiling as if it was a movie. He tried to ingrain the details into his mind as hard as he could, but as most dreams happen, he was bound to forget about them the coming morning.

"Did you meet anyone today?" Jaemin tried to start a conversation. Maybe it would get whatever that was bothering Jeno off his mind so that he could sleep better.

Jeno thought of Huang Renjun, then he thought of the mysterious stranger from the subway train. Two interesting people he had met that day.

"Well someone was willing to be my deskmate this year. His name's Huang Renjun, and he seemed friendly. But I think that he'll avoid me once he hears the rumors about me." Jeno's expression was hopeful at first but then it turned doleful.

"Aww, don't think like that, Jeno. I hope he turns out decent or I'll beat him up for you." Jaemin reassured him.

Jeno chuckled. Even though it would be impossible for Jaemin to punch Renjun, he found it funny the way Jaemin was trying to cheer him up.

"There's also this stranger I saw during my subway ride back home," he continued. He suddenly remembered the white feather he had stashed into his backpack from earlier.

"He had this weird get-up on. He wore an all black suit complete with a fedora hat. What made him stand out more was this bright white feather perched on his hat. He looked about my age but he read a newspaper on the subway. I mean who even reads newspapers these days? Everything is just on the tip of your fingers!" Jeno raised his hands in frustration. A small laugh escaped Jaemin's lips at Jeno’s cute behaviour.

"The funny thing was that no one seemed to notice him. Only I did. But I'm sure he wasn't a ghost. He didn't have the grey death aura like you have. He’s not dead, that’s for sure. No offense, Jaemin." Jeno turned to look at Jaemin.

Jaemin shrugged his shoulders. "None taken."

"He even said he would see me again tomorrow," The thought of meeting the creepy stranger again gave Jeno the shivers. What did he even want from him? But he seemed to know the fact that Jeno could see...things. Otherworldly things. But how?

"He doesn't even know my name or where I live at. But that doesn't explain him disappearing into nowhere after that. What do you think he is Jaemin?" he asked Jaemin, who had been a ghost for quite some time, in hope for an answer.

A moment of silence blanketed them. "He could be a grim reaper. Black is after all their official colour. Maybe the white feather is just his personality. A fashion statement. If that makes any sense." Jaemin replied his best, but he wasn't quite sure of his answer either. Even if he is a ghost now, to him, that doesn’t mean he would know much about the otherworldly beings. Back when he was alive, he was a skeptic after all. Everything hit him like a bucket of cold water once he turned into a ghost.

Jeno hummed softly, the kind of hum you give out to fill in the silence. "Have you ever seen a grim reaper Jaemin?" He asked.

"I've seen them but I always manage to evade them. That's how I'm still here." A low laugh resounded through the room. Jaemin's laugh was lovely, and only Jeno was able to hear it. It was a pity he couldn’t have heard it when Jaemin was alive. Jeno was sure they would get along. Although Jaemin would be a few years older. But if Jaemin hadn’t died, they wouldn’t have met either way. 

"But I would advise you to stay away from them. They're _absolutely_ bad luck. If you see them, that means you're dead." Jaemin stressed on the word _absolutely_.

"But I saw the mysterious stranger today and I'm not dead yet." _The mysterious stranger_. Jeno settled on calling him that for now.

"Hmm… I'm not sure about that. Maybe he isn't a grim reaper. Most of them are just like plain old boring emotionless office workers. But if you do see a grim worker, run away as fast as you can."

Jeno let out a soft _haha_ , he didn't want to wake his mom up.

Jeno wondered how Jaemin was able to listen to all his blabbering throughout all these years. Maybe it was because the only source of entertainment for Jaemin. It must have been really lonely being a ghost bound to one place. Oftentimes Jeno thought of how Jaemin had ended up here and not moved on yet. He wondered what regrets a bright person like Jaemin could possibly still have.

"I know you always change the topic and how you always feel uncomfortable about me asking this, but can I ask you one last time?" Asking this question would probably invoke a bad memory.

Jaemin inhaled a deeply. From Jeno’s tone, he knew what Jeno was talking about, and it was probably about time he stopped evading what was bound to be asked. “Sure.”

"How did you die?"

There was a vacant look on Jaemin's face. An expression Jeno was unable to read.

"Actually Jeno, I really don't know. All I know was I realized that I was dead and I'm bound to this place, my home. If I remember, I would definitely tell you."

Jeno looked Jaemin in the eye. Even if the mouth can lie, the eyes always tell the truth. If Jeno had any hidden inborn talent, it would be knowing a lie when you hear one. Even in the darkness of his room, Jeno could tell that Jaemin was telling the truth. He truly doesn’t know.

"I'm sorry that if my family moving here intruded on you." Jeno apologized.

"Oh no, don’t be. My family moved away after I died. I understand them being heartbroken every time they would be here. I also cannot blame them for not knowing that I am still here. If by any means, you moving here only brought me joy." 

"Do you remember anything before you died?"

"I made a lot of great memories back when I was alive. I met a lot of great friends too when I first entered high school." Jaemin recalled. He didn’t say much, it would only make him sad. And Jeno understood that.

"I can't believe we're the same age now, huh. You practically watched me grow older."

"Yeah," they both laughed harmoniously.

"Then why haven't you left yet? You don't have any unsolved regrets do you?"

"I really wanted to leave, but I can't. There's something I can't place my finger on. It feels like a part of me is missing. I wonder to myself sometimes why I can't leave even though I'm only bound to good memories."

"Hey Jaemin," Jeno yawned as he called out. He was already getting sleepy again.

"Yeah,"

"Thanks for listening to me. I think I can sleep better now," 

"And thanks for keeping company. If I could, I would be cuddling you right now," Jaemin proceeded to hug Jeno, only for his hand to pass right through his body. Jeno laughed at his action.

"Goodnight Jaemin,"

"Goodnight Jeno,"

And with that, Jeno was able to sleep the rest of the night safe and sound. 

*

Jeno woke up to the incessant sound of the school bell ringing, a sign that school was over. He had been nodding his head back and forth throughout the last period, history class. Thank God he chose to sit at the back, far from the teacher's attention focus. Last night's lack of sleep really took a toll on him. And it's only the second day of school. At times, Jeno could feel Renjun poking his arm with his pen, his efforts, futile. Renjun was probably annoyed at him. He didn’t seem the type to tolerate lazy students dozing off in class.

Jeno felt guilty for having Renjun wake him up constantly, but he just couldn’t help it. He wiped the corners of his mouth to make sure there was no leftover saliva. At least he didn't drool. That would have been really embarrassing and would leave a bad impression of him to Renjun. 

That morning, Jeno was still surprised to see that Renjun sat next to him. At first he thought that his class was full, until he noticed that a seat somewhere in the middle was empty. The guy sitting next to it had put his backpack there the day before. He expected Renjun to move his seat there yet here he was, still next to Jeno.

The chatter in the class was loud. The students were talking about what they planned to do after school. Some were going to study at private academies while others decided to just go home. There were even students who were going to hangout together as it was only just the beginning of the school year, they still had plenty of time left till exams. As Jeno slowly stuffed his stationery back into his pencil case, the commotion began to grow louder surrounding him. He looked up dazed and saw that his classmates were slowly gathering one by one around the windows.

"Hey, look at that person. Who does he think he is?" He heard one classmate say.

"I only see celebrities wear clothes like those in music videos. Do you think he's a celebrity filming something?" Another classmate exclaimed.

"Don't be ridiculous, not at our school," someone chided.

"What is he doing in front of our school, do you think he's a sugar daddy?" A girl whispered.

Wanting to know what all the racket was about, Jeno looked outside the window. That was when he caught sight of a bizarre figure standing in front of the school gates. _The mysterious stranger_. It had to be him. Only he dressed like that. 

He was dressed in a similar outfit like yesterday's, except today it was the opposite. Instead of yesterday’s somber black suit, today’s suit was white, an atrociously blinding ivory white. Perched on his white fedora hat was a black feather. Unmistakably not the attire of an esteemed grim reaper. 

This time he definitely stood out, and he made sure everyone saw him. All those who passed by would stop and stare at him, prompting them to bump into each other and giving rise to student traffic at the gates. None of the passersby dared to interact with him. 

The mysterious stranger must have had eagle eyesight as he managed to spot Jeno who's classroom was on the third floor of the school building, or maybe it was just Jeno who thought he was looking at him. He began waving frantically, causing other people to gawk at him even more while some even distancing themselves further from him. Although the beleaguer of people overlooking him didn't know who he was waving at, Jeno was confident that he was directing at him.

_Shit_ , Jeno thought.

"I'm going home first," he expressed hurriedly to no one in particular, but Renjun had heard him and replied with a curt okay.

Jeno grabbed his backpack and jogged down the stairs quickly. He surely wasn't going to take the chances of going through the main gates and encountering the stranger. This left him to his only choice, climbing the back fence. He walked through the cafeteria to the exit at the back of the building, hidden from the main gates. He finally reached the back alley where a large trash dump rested. Thankfully, there were no CCTV cameras watching him from there.

Jeno had never skipped school even once in his life, not to mention climbing over a fence. He was a good student, what you would call a perfect goody-two-shoes, and he did fairly well in his studies. 

He looked up at the fence. Technically, it was a brick wall with leaves crawling up the walls. It wasn't short but it wasn't too tall either. He could climb up using the cracks between the bricks. At least they didn't have spiky edges on top of them. This should be easy. If Jeno tried hard enough, maybe he would make it through this one. What he was about to do technically wasn't against the rules, as school had already ended, he convinced himself. He wasn’t really sure why he would do this, maybe it was an act on impulse. It was the only route he could think of that ensured he would not bump into the mysterious stranger.

Jeno threw his backpack to the other side so that it wouldn’t disturb him while he was climbing. It landed with a loud thud as it hit against the pavement. _RIP items in my bag_ , Jeno grimaced. _Okay, here we go_. Jeno inhaled a deep breath of air and began placing his fingers in the crack between the bricks carefully. He then lifted one leg and stepped on the ledge. Adding a bit of force, Jeno jumped and boosted his other leg to the other side of the wall. He was now hoisted on top of the wall, legs dangling on both sides. He looked around vigilantly to make sure no one had seen him climb and get down from the wall.

Carefully, Jeno jumped down to the ground, his two feet landing with a loud thud. He made sure to spread his feet slightly and bent his knees to avoid injury. He wiped off a bead of sweat from his forehead using the back of his hands. Jeno dusted his hands and brushed off his pants, removing dust that had accumulated from the wall climb. He then proceeded to do the same to his backpack, checking the insides afterwards. His pencil case was fine, except he frowned at the sight of a few of his books being a bit misshapen, bent around the corners. 

He slung his backpack between his shoulders and began walking towards the direction of the subway station. A small smile began forming at his lips, proud that he was able to pull that off. _Phew, I did it. I hope I won’t have to do that again though_. There was a lingering feeling of guilt tugging at his heart, not that he did anything wrong, school had already ended. He just couldn’t risk leaving through the entrance of the school like a normal person and bump into the mysterious stranger at the front gates.

_The school should really plant CCTV cameras at the back allies. And also reinforce the walls. Put some spiky shards of glass on the wall or something. Maybe then students wouldn’t skip school that much._

As Jeno was about to plug in a pair of earphones into his ears, he heard a set of slow claps coming from behind him. Jeno stopped in his tracks and turned around. The mysterious stranger, stunning in his full white suit complete with black feathered fedora hat, stood before him. He gulped nervously. All of his efforts had gone in vain.

“Wow, well done. Great perfoemance you put on!,” Fedora Hat praised sarcastically. His smile was sardonic, a glint of bemusement shimmered in his eyes. "Did you practice that a lot?"

“Wha- what are you doing here?” Jeno stammered. He clutched his hands into fists, ready in case anything happened.

“Relax, I came to see you. Didn’t I say so yesterday, Lee Jeno?” the stranger neared him.

“How do you know my name? And how do you know I go here?” Jeno slowly backed away. 

The stranger raised his index finger in front of Jeno’s face, then he tapped it softly on Jeno’s chest. There was his name tag along with the school badge stitched onto his uniform. _Ugh_ , Jeno should have known better.

The stranger’s eyes darted towards Jeno’s clutched fists on his sides.

“Whoa, hold it back there tough guy, I assure you, you don’t want to fight me. I mastered martial arts and am a skilled swordsman,” he shaked his head in disapproval.

“What do you want from me?” Jeno backed away, giving him a safe distance between him and the stranger. If anything, his adrenaline was already kicking in and he was entering fight or flight mode.

“I just want to take you out for dinner.” he grinned, an array of pearly whites on full display. A wink accompanied the excruciating smile.

“Am I talking to myself or are you even real?” Not letting his guard down, Jeno recalled how the stranger was practically invisible yesterday. He wasn’t sure whether the person in front of him was a ghost, or a grim reaper, or maybe none of those.

“Do I look like a ghost to you?” the stranger scoffed. “Or do I look like a grim reaper?” it was as if he read Jeno’s contemplating mind.

From the corner of his vision, he could see a few people walking across the street. Some were gawking in their direction, bewildered by the eye-catching stranger across them. It was clear as day that other people were able to see him.

“Because I’m none,” the stranger settled.

“Then what are you? How do I even know I can trust you? I don’t even know you,” Jeno’s gaze softened, his eyes leered downwards. He himself wasn’t sure about this. The stranger didn’t seem as harmful as he thought he was.

“Trust me buddy, if I wanted to hurt you, I would have done that a long time ago,” the stranger’s expression fell, his mouth forming a thin line across his face, just when Jeno was about to let his guard down. “I just want to make a deal with you. I know you can see ghosts.” he said the last sentence a bit quietly, wary of any eaves-dropping ears. He might as well get straight to the point if he wanted to persuade Jeno.

Jeno’s pupils bulged with surprise. “How do you know that?” 

“I’ll explain if you let me take you out.”

Jeno paused a moment for thought. He was curious about who this peculiar stranger was and why he felt attracted to him. Something inside him tugged at the feeling that he could trust him. But something else inside him told him not to. He knew something about his abilities. If Jeno tried to run away, he knew the stranger would only chase him again. He might as well face him head on.

“You promise you won’t hurt me right?” Jeno implored for confirmation. His eyes narrowed with suspicion.

“I promise,” the stranger gave him an earnest smile. It was enough to gain Jeno’s trust, but not fully. He needed to know this stranger first if he wanted to trust him.

Jeno walked towards him, “You better start explaining,” Jeno gave him the once-over before continuing moving forward. He wasn’t going to let his guard down so easily. 

The stranger’s face beamed with delight, glad that he had gotten Jeno on board with his plan, yet. Jeno’s steps were steady, but quick, giving a couple distance between him and the stranger. He had to jog a bit to keep up with Jeno’s pace. Every time he managed to catch up with Jeno, Jeno sped forward, leaving him jogging once more. 

It was embarrassing to walk with the stranger, he attracted too much attention with his extravagant outfit, and attention was definitely the least Jeno wanted at the moment.

“The name’s Lee Donghyuck,” Donghyuck extended his hand for a handshake eagerly.

Jeno glared at his hand, leaving Donghyuck hanging as he awkwardly retracted his hand and fixed his hat that didn’t need any fixing. “ _Okayy_ ,” Donghyuck dragged the last syllable out of awkwardness. This was tougher than he thought.

Jeno glanced at Donghyuck from head to toe.

“Aren’t you hot wearing that?” He asked. Although the summer heat had already fizzled off as autumn slowly rolled in, it was still too warm to start wearing layered clothing. 

“Meh, can’t feel the heat if you ain’t got a heartbeat, am I right?” Donghyuck snorted at his own joke, his elbow nudging Jeno slightly.

Jeno’s cheeks puffed as he tried fighting off a giggle from escaping his mouth. He had always been easy to entertain, even with lame dad jokes. But he was not going to loosen up yet.

Donghyuck bursted into laughter at seeing Jeno’s poor attempt at containing his own laugh. 

“Ahem,” Jeno coughed his seriousness returning. He held his guard back up, asserting himself.

“Just admit it was funny,” Donghyuck wiped a tear from the corner of his eye.

“It wasn’t,” Jeno responded flatly. His lips formed a thin line.

“Haha, you remind me of Doyoung, you guys could be brothers,” _They already share the same stoic personality_ , Donghyuck thought.

They had barely known each other for a few minutes and Jeno had already reminded Donghyuck of someone.

“Who’s Doyoung?”

Donghyuck who was still recollecting himself replied, “Trust me, you definitely don’t want to meet him.” He hadn’t realized he had slipped in Doyoung’s name.

Not wanting to press any further, Jeno shifted the topic. Maybe he would ask another time. 

“Where are we eating anyway?” One of the reasons he had easily agreed to this was because of the food offer. He was already starving after doing some climbing just now.

“We’re here already,” 

Coincidentally, they stopped walking. By the side of the road was a charming little restaurant. A quaint signboard fixed above the entrance read ‘Moon Noodles’. As they entered, the small bell hung on top of the door jingled, signalling that customers had just arrived.

The interior of the restaurant was cozy, not too flashy and not too minimal, with soft lighting and the perfect ambience for comfortable eating. There were a few other patrons in the restaurant, busy chatting and enjoying their meals. 

A man walked in from the kitchen, tying the strings of his apron behind his back along the way. “Welcome-,” He looked up and saw Donghyuck. A glint of recognition flashed in his eyes as he pointed towards him. His eyes softened as a friendly smile stretched across his face.

“Oh Donghyuck, you’re here again,” the man went in for an affectionate hug with Donghyuck. The man seemed good-natured, and he had a pleasant smile. The way he hugged Donghyuck gave Jeno an impression that he gave the best hugs in the world. He assumed that this man was the owner of the restaurant, from the way he brought himself. 

“And you brought a friend with you,” 

Jeno bowed politely. The man patted his back softly. “And he’s so good-looking,” Jeno felt his cheeks getting warmer as a shade of soft pink spread over them. He was not used to direct praise like this.

“This is Lee Jeno,” Donghyuck introduced Jeno to the friendly owner. Jeno gave him a shy smile. “I’m Moon Taeil, proud owner of Moon Noodles,” Taeil held his hand out for a handshake, which Jeno complied, only to be met with a cozy hug, just like what Jeno had thought. For a small man, he surely was packed with warmth. 

"We specialize in noodles," it was already obvious from the signboard outside.

Taeil led Donghyuck and Jeno to a table by the window, distant from the other customers. 

“You go to this place often?” Jeno whispered to Donghyuck.

“No, this is my second time. I found this place yesterday. It has a nice atmosphere, and great food too.” Donghyuck whispered back.

“But you look close to the owner already.”

“We chatted yesterday and he’s super friendly. What can I say? People love me.” Donghyuck grinned. 

Jeno almost gagged. You mean people _loathe_ you. 

He was also amazed that those two had just met and yet they already look like they’ve known each other for a long time. In this world, there truly are people that can immediately click together.

“What can I get for you two handsome boys?” Taeil handed both of them a menu each after they were both seated. He took out a pencil and a small notebook to jot down their orders. 

Jeno opened the menu and started reading the first few dishes. He didn’t know there could be an abundance of so many different types of noodles. Japchae, bibimyeon, ramyeon, jjolmyeon. Not to mention the different ways these noodles could be cooked. Stir fried, beef, chicken, black pepper. The list of varieties was endless. It would take more than a lifetime to try them all out. Maybe that was _a bit_ exaggerated.

“We’ll take two plates of jjajangmyeon please,” 

Jeno hadn’t finished going through the menu when Donghyuck had started ordering for them. “And two glasses of milkshake.” 

“Okie-dokie,” Taeil scribbled down on his notebook. He whispered something to Donghyuck, earning a soft smack from Donghyuck before hurriedly running off and disappearing behind the curtains of the kitchen while giggling.

Jeno looked up from the menu and stared at Donghyuck. _How dare he order without asking me?_ , Jeno caviled to himself.

“What was that?” Jeno questioned.

Donghyuck who was still smiling replied lightly, “nothing.”

“Tell me.”

“You don’t want to know, it’s embarrassing.” Donghyuck gave him a lopsided grin. Jeno didn’t want to think any further. It was probably something better off left in the dark.

"Why'd you order for me?"

"Trust me, it's really delicious," Donghyuck proclaimed.

Soon after, their orders arrived. The sweet aroma wafted through the air and Jeno had to stop himself from drooling. “I prefer jjampong though.” Jeno stated.

“No, you like jjajangmyeon,” 

“No, I like jjampong more.”

“You like jjajangmyeon more,” Donghyuck insisted as a matter of fact.

Jeno was dumbfounded. Clearly Jeno knew what his taste buds preferred but it was no use going back and forth like this. At this rate, he was compelled to like whatever Donghyuck said, and he didn’t have a say in it. He wiped his chopsticks and began digging into his meal.

But Donghyuck was right. The stir fried jjajangmyeon was one of the best noodles he had ever tasted in his life, probably second to his mom’s jjajangmyeon. To him, nothing beats his mom’s cooking, although this jjajangmyeon comes close. It was so good that Jeno wolfed it down in one sitting. 

“I told you you’d like jjajangmyeon,” Donghyuck remarked.

“But I haven’t tasted their jjampong,”

And with that, Jeno ordered another bowl of jjampong. At least it wasn't coming out of his pocket money. 

*

Jeno leaned against his chair as he rubbed his already full stomach. “That was so good,” he downed another glass of water. “I still like jjampong better.” A small burp escaped as Jeno quickly covered his mouth with his hand. “Sorry.”

Donghyuck huffed as he crossed his arms from across the table, “Whatever, you don’t have taste.”

Jeno let out a small chuckle. He then straightened his back as he placed both arms on the table. “Okay back to business, we’re not done yet.” Donghyuck watched his expression harden. Jeno was about to start his interrogation. 

“Who and what are you?”

Donghyuck tried to find the best way to explain, it was really that complicated. He looked around everywhere, except Jeno’s face. He then gestured his head towards a boy sitting alone at a table somewhere behind Jeno. “You see that boy right there?”

Jeno turned around to look at said boy. The boy was slurping down a bowl of noodles, satisfaction evident on his face. Jeno noticed him sitting there ever since they first entered the restaurant, but upon closer inspection, he saw the cloud of light grey aura surrounding him. 

“Mhmm,” Jeno hummed. Jeno wondered what was stopping the boy from moving on to the next life. Maybe he visited this place with his family a lot and wanted one last bowl before he would feel content and move on. It was entertaining imagining what the lives of the ghosts he’s seen were before they died but it left a tinge of melancholy in him thinking that sometimes even the smallest regrets can hold you back from moving forward.

“He’s a ghost right? But I’m not,” 

Jeno turned to face Donghyuck back. True, there wasn’t even a slightest hint of death aura surrounding him. 

“I’m also not a grim reaper,” Donghyuck declared. He clasped both his hands together as he leaned his elbows on the table. His facial expression turned solemn. “I’m a ghost hunter.”

“A ghost- what?” Jeno blurted out loud. A few diners sitting near them looked their way and shushed him. Jeno shot an apologetic look at them and mouthed sorry.

“A ghost- what?” this time he whispered more quietly to Donghyuck.

“I’m a ghost hunter,” Donghyuck repeated.

Jeno raised an eyebrow at him. Like that explained anything. Donghyuck exhaled at Jeno’s lack of comprehension.

“It's just a cool name I gave myself. I'm like a grim reaper, but not like *like a grim reaper. I’m being punished for something I did in my past life that I can't even remember. I have to send away 10 000 evil spirits-” Donghyuck’s explanation was interrupted by Jeno who was slurping his milkshake loudly.

“Can you not do that?” Donghyuck scorned out of annoyance.

Unfazed, Jeno took in another slurp of his milkshake.

“Give me that,” Donghyuck took away Jeno’s glass of milkshake and put it away from him. There was a look of forlorn on Jeno’s face, which soon turned to satisfaction at being able to annoy him.

"Were you even listening?"

"I lost you at grim reaper. You were saying?" Jeno grinned from ear to ear.

Donghyuck groaned exasperatedly. Enlisting Jeno's help was going to be harder than he thought.

“Long story short, I have one month to send away five evil spirits and I need your help.”

Jeno’s eyebrows knitted. His eyes narrowed at Donghyuck with a puzzled look on his face. 

“What do you need me for?”

"You have a gift. You're like a magnet for ghosts. You help me find five evil spirits and I'll get out of your way." It sounded simple but it was actually more complicated than that.

Jeno frowned. "Just because I'm more vulnerable, you want me to risk getting possessed just so you can get your evil spirit? For your information, I have never been possessed and I intend to keep it that way," he fumed. "Why don't you seek help from a shaman? They might be able to help you."

Donghyuck sighed.

"Shamans are all frauds. I haven't seen a real ghost-seeing shaman ever since the Great Dong Sicheng in 1950." Donghyuck waved his hand in the air. "The real deals are usually normal people living their normal lives, like you," Donghyuck gestured towards Jeno.

"That's because you've stopped looking." Jeno took back his milkshake and started slurping. "What's in it for me?" There was a glimmer of interest in his eyes. He knew Donghyuck had something to offer to convince him.

The corners of Donghyuck's lips slowly curled upward. He got Jeno where he wanted.

"Here's where the offer steps in. What if I say I can remove your abilities to see ghosts?" Donghyuck waggled his eyebrows in a frenzy.

Jeno paused for a moment. He was deep in thought. The offer was something he had wished for all his life. He thought that maybe, just maybe, he could have a chance at living a normal life. But what if it was all just a fluke? But he had seen enough evidence to prove that Donghyuck was not. What was there to risk, right? Risk getting possessed? Donghyuck was going to protect him. Donghyuck did say he was skilled in martial arts. The offer Donghyuck proposed was tempting.

Jeno put down his finished milkshake. 

"I'm in."

_Yes!_ There was a beatific expression etched on Donghyuck's face. He had managed to get Jeno on board with his plan. Now all he had to do was figure out the details on how to _actually_ remove Jeno's abilities.

"So when do we start?"

"Tomorrow, I'll pick you up after school," Donghyuck had already had his first plan in mind. They both got up from their seats after enjoying their hearty meal. While Jeno ate two bowls of noodles, Donghyuck ordered a whopping five bowls of noodles.

Jeno had never been more stupefied at Donghyuck's ability to consume a shit ton of food, or anyone for that matter. "Ghost hunting is better done from dusk till dawn."

"But we can't stay out late though, I still have school."

"Sure, we'll manage the time," They both walked towards the counter.

"You're buying right?" Jeno queried. He definitely did not have a lot of cash on him right now.

"Yeah, I did say I was taking you out," Donghyuck winked at him. Jeno winced at the sudden tease. Like it or not, he was going to have to get used to it. 

"And that's a total of 100,000 won," the cashier stated. Jeno's eyes bulged wide. If he was eating with his mom, his mom would have fainted from a cardiac arrest just from a look at the staggering bill. Donghyuck took out his wallet nonchalantly, as if the bill amount did not disturb him at all. He opened his wallet, and Jeno's eyeballs almost popped from their sockets seeing a thick stack of bills wedged between it. If a person were ever able to rob Donghyuck, which Jeno doubted was possible, they would have hit the jackpot. On their way out, Jeno asked Donghyuck.

"How did you get all that money?"

Donghyuck rubbed his index finger against his thumb in front of Jeno.

"Hustle, baby, hustle," he replied. Jeno's eyes moved from side to side warily. He was afraid someone might have misheard them.

"Shhh, you don't want anyone thinking we are criminals or something," he raised his hand to cover Donghyuck's mouth. Donghyuck struggled to remove Jeno's hand. 

"Do you think my services are for free? I resolve evil spirits' issues if they have any hidden stash left in this world."

No wonder he didn’t seem bothered at all. He probably had more cash hidden somewhere. Jeno thought maybe he had accidentally stumbled upon a shady business. He glanced up at the sky and saw the purple hue engulfing the red as dusk fell. 

"Shit, I forgot to text my mom. I don't want her to worry." Jeno whipped up his phone from his pocket and started typing.

"Ahh, youngsters and their gadgets. It's like their eyes are glued to them. Back in my day, we played with wooden swords and fought to the death!" Donghyuck started to ramble on like an old man. Maybe he was joking, maybe he was actually dead serious. Jeno looked at him in astonishment. 

"You don't have a phone?"

"Don't need one," Donghyuck smiled back. It was unbelievable that a teenager his age didn't own a smartphone.

"How old are you again?" Jeno's curiosity piqued.

"516," Donghyuck replied blatantly. Jeno's eyes widened with surprise. “More or less,”

"You're like 500 years older than me," he said in disbelief. 

"Yeah, so what? What's important is that I'm young at heart." _Pfft, yeah right_ , said the person who doesn't have a smartphone.

"We need to fix that. You need a phone. How are we gonna communicate?" Jeno thought that maybe a beginner Nokia dumb phone would suit him. Even the oldest of grandpas could use that.

Donghyuck brought a finger to his lips as he contemplated. "No need for a phone. I have something better." His lips formed a smirk.

Donghyuck noticed Jeno's eyebrows furrowing.

"You'll see."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Feel free to leave some feedback in the comments!


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Donghyuck clasped his hands together in all seriousness. "I'm a ghost hunter,"
> 
> "A ghost- what?" Jeno blurted out loud.
> 
> "A ghost hunter," Donghyuck repeated, this time more quietly. "I've been punished to 500 years of sending away 10 000 evil ghosts-" Donghyuck's explanation was interrupted by Jeno slurping his milkshake loudly.
> 
> "Can you stop that? Were you even listening?" Donghyuck scolded him.
> 
> "Sorry, I lost you at ghost hunter. You were saying?" Jeno grinned from ear to ear.
> 
> "Give me that."

"You seem in a jolly good mood today," Donghyuck commented. He was wearing a bright red bomber jacket with a white graphic tee inside. A pair of stylish air force sunglasses completed his look. It was an outfit suited for celebrities, ones that Jeno had only seen on television or what idols wore on stage. He had an aura that drew in everyone’s attention, whether they consciously realized it or not. Just like yesterday, he definitely drew eyes again, especially as a teenager not dressed in a school uniform waiting suspiciously in front of a school. Jeno pretended not to know him until they were away from prying eyes near the school gates.

Despite the attention slowly gathering, Jeno in fact was in a good mood. He had a silly wide grin spread from ear to ear and anyone who looked at him would have thought that he was in love or something. His relationship with Renjun was starting to bloom. They talked more today, about things outside of school, like where did they live and what were their hobbies. It wasn’t much, but there was still progress. He was starting to gain hope that he just might have made a friend and won’t have to be an outcast during high school, not that he minded anyway. 

“Yup,” Jeno hummed. Donghyuck noticed the small skips in Jeno’s steps. Despite Donghyuck’s easy-going appearance, he was a more observant type in nature, and at first glance, Jeno’s small skips of joy would go unnoticed. He wondered what was making him so happy today, a contrast from his cold self yesterday.

“I already told my mom I’ll be late today. Where are we going?” Jeno asked him.

“Let’s go eat something first,” Donghyuck suggested.

At the mention of the word ‘eat’, a low rumble came from Jeno’s stomach. “Good idea, I’m starving,” Jeno rubbed his stomach. 

This time, Donghyuck brought him to a popular fast food restaurant chain somewhere near school. There, they ordered two sets of burgers and fries. As usual, Donghyuck drew eyes wherever they went. Jeno thought that he just might have to get used to it.

“Mhmm, the food is delicious!” Jeno said after swallowing a bite of his burger. “Are you familiar with this area?’’ His eyes went round with delight. He didn’t know there was a branch set up near here. Maybe it was because he was too busy lamenting his own thoughts when he walked, eyes glued to the pavement, oblivious to his surroundings.

“Not really, I just found out that they have a branch here from the Internet,” Donghyuck took in another bite of his burger.

“But how? you don’t even have a smartphone,” Jeno’s brows drew together. He remembered Donghyuck mentioning yesterday that he didn’t own the most essential piece of technology, a smartphone.

“I have a computer at home,”

“You have a computer but you don’t have a smartphone?” Jeno questioned in between bites. 

“I have my priorities.” Donghyuck shrugged.

Jeno thought he would never be able to understand Donghyuck, or maybe it would take an eternity for him to understand if he put in more effort. So far from what Jeno had observed from Donghyuck, he concluded that Donghyuck was a supernatural being with powers. His ability to appear and disappear out of nowhere, the questionable amount of money in his wallet, the ‘skilled in martial arts and swordsmanship’. But what _kind_ of supernatural being he has no clue. Out of all the ancient folklores passed down from one generation to the other, it was as if there was no category for Donghyuck, no box to put him in that fit the criteria. Not that he was familiar with.

“Hey, you said you were going to give me something better than a smartphone. What is it?” Jeno remembered suddenly.

Donghyuck’s eyes lit up. “Yeah, wait a sec,” He fumbled his hands in his pockets. After digging for a while, he took out a small slender metallic box. His fingers traced the intricate carvings decorating the box, the details giving off a classy vibe. The box seemed ancient, but well maintained. Donghyuck flipped the cover off with his finger, revealing it as a lighter.

“Thanks, but I don’t smoke,” Jeno deadpanned. He shifted around, making sure to cover the lighter in Donghyuck’s hands. He looked around hoping that nobody had seen Donghyuck suddenly whipping out his lighter and now fiddling it between his fingers. It was common sense to know that smoking was forbidden in restaurants. Thank God the restaurant wasn’t packed and they chose a table hidden from peering eyes. Donghyuck seemed to have a knack for ignoring common public etiquette. 

“It’s not for smoking, those taste like shit,” Donghyuck had a blank expression on his face. Jeno scrunched up his face. He was not going to question how Donghyuck had his hands on cigarettes. First things first, how was he going to call for Donghyuck with a lighter? By lighting a smoke signal?

As if he had read Jeno’s mind, Donghyuck began to explain. “With your thumb, just roll it down the sparkwheel and into the ignition button to make a flame, like this,” Donghyuck proceeded to demonstrate. 

“I know how to use a lighter you know,” Jeno commented. Not for smoking, though.

Donghyuck glared at Jeno, ignoring him. “Then you blow it out,” he blew out the flame in one breath. He then passed the lighter to Jeno. 

Jeno fidgeted the lighter between his fingers as he scrutinized it. “What am I supposed to do-,” he was cut short when he lifted his head, but to his chagrin, Donghyuck had disappeared in the blink of an eye. 

Jeno looked around him. He couldn’t have suddenly ghosted into thin air and left him there, or could he? They already had plans together. Jeno looked back at the lighter. Whatever, maybe he should just follow along with Donghyuck and give it a try. Jeno swiftly lit up a flame. His lips pouted into an ’o’ shape as a breath of air escaped his lungs and quickly blew out the flame. As he blew out the flickering fire, he closed his eyes as tight as he could. It wasn’t on consciousness, but as an innate habit wanting to see what would happen once he opened back his eyes, even if he wasn’t expecting much. 

But lo and behold, back in front of him sat Donghyuck, as if he had never even moved an inch. 

“Tadaa~,” Donghyuck greeted him, jazz hands in the air, as if he had just pulled off a magnificent magic trick. Seeing no reaction coming from Jeno, Donghyuck fussed, “Couldn’t you have given me much more of a bit of an impression?” Donghyuck pouted. Jeno’s unresponsiveness wasn’t because he wasn’t amazed, but he was at a loss of words. It took him a bit of time to process the information that when something involves Donghyuck, anything can happen, a fact that he had already accepted when he decided to take on this deal.

Noticing Jeno’s speechlessness, Donghyuck took advantage of the situation to start saying whatever he wanted. “Ah, thank you, thank you. I know, I was amazing, you don’t have to flatter me with your loss of words.” Jeno, who had regained composure, glared down at Donghyuck, shutting him down. At times Jeno seemed like the harmless type, he had an aloof air to him. But when he had on a serious face, he looked like he was capable of killing someone. At this rate it was confusing to know who was supposed to be scared of who in the first place. “Let’s just go now,” said Jeno, breaking the slight tension between them. Donghyuck’s shoulders drooped, he was sad that he failed to impress Jeno.

After dinner, the sun had already begun to set. Jeno glanced up at the sky and saw the vibrant mixture of indigo, orange and red, darkness slowly engulfing the last glow of red in the west. Dusk was falling. With Donghyuck leading the way, they took the subway to their next destination, a park by the lake. Donghyuck told him that ghosts tended to loiter around there.

There was a nagging feeling in Jeno’s gut, telling him not to be there. He never liked being out of his house after sunset, the start of the peak hours of wandering ghosts. He would try his best to keep a nonchalant expression on his face, but ghosts liked to stare shamelessly, and the braver ones would touch the humans they fancied. It didn’t help that Jeno had a stupidly handsome sculpted face, sharp angles lining his features, attracting ghosts more than he liked. 

He knew why he was there, otherwise he wouldn’t have gone. His job was to act as a ghost magnet. He would attract the evil ghosts, and then Donghyuck would try to resolve their issues, that was what he promised. Then it would all be over in a month. Jeno closed his eyes. Unconsciously, he laced his fingers between the fingers of Donghyuck’s hand, letting him guide the way. Something told him that Donghyuck would protect him no matter what, and he knew he was capable of that.

They waited for a while in the park, the street lamps were the only source of light illuminating them. However, no ghost dared to approach them. 

If Jeno was a magnet, then Donghyuck was a repellent. Ghosts feared going near him. Just at the sight of him, they would disappear completely, making it hard for Donghyuck to find spirits. They figured he could see them as he looked at them straight in the eye fearlessly. They knew he wasn’t a human, but he didn’t have an aura of death surrounding him, so they thought he was a grim reaper, there to take them away. Little did they know that Donghyuck was there to do the opposite, to help resolve the issues of evil spirits and send them away with no regrets.

After a while, Donghyuck broke the silence between them. “This won’t do. They’re all afraid of me.” He was aware of the fact that he repelled spirits. That was why he sought the help of ghost magnet Lee Jeno. 

Donghyuck gazed into the distance, to where the lake was. A finger scratched his chin in thought as Jeno observed him. The area was empty, only the two of them happened to be spending the early night in the park by the lake. Suddenly, his whole face lit up as an idea popped up. An imaginary lightbulb appeared next to his head. Jeno’s stomach churned. Something tells him that what Donghyuck had in mind would be something he won’t like. 

“How about you stay near the water, and I’ll hide somewhere?”

Jeno’s gut turned out right. 

“That way, maybe you would attract a water ghost.”

Jeno’s face scrunched up in dissent. He had always had a fear of going near large bodies of water. Water ghosts weren’t ones to play with. They were the most evil of spirits, having died of being drowned or their bodies tossed in after a cold-blooded murder. Water ghosts also had the ability to drown others with them. Not to mention their hideous appearance with pale lifeless faces and dripping wet hair. He immediately shook his head fervently.

“No way, I am not going near the water.” Jeno made an ‘x’ with his hands.

“Please, I have to send away an evil spirit. I won’t be far, just far enough for ghosts to be able to approach you. I’ll protect you, I promise.” Donghyuck pleaded. His eyes drooped woefully as he pouted. He held out his pinkie finger in motion for Jeno to link his. A promise. Jeno almost felt like he pitied him. He could risk dying doing this. Donghyuck’s persuasion was working.

“If you’re far, how would you know if I was attacked?” 

“I would know, I’m not your average guy, remember? Just trust me,” Donghyuck assured him. 

True, Jeno hadn’t known the extent of Donghyuck’s supernatural powers. But that doesn’t mean he should put his whole confidence in him. Not when he would be putting his life at stake. Jeno remembered the reason why he was doing this. Oh, the lengths Jeno was going to just to get his abilities removed. After a moment, he nodded reluctantly. He put his full trust in Donghyuck to protect him.

“Promise me okay,” Jeno linked his pinky with Donghyuck’s. 

“I promise.”

As Jeno walked towards the shore, Donghyuck was already out of sight. He held in a deep breath, he was about to face some of the most malevolent spirits out there. He looked into the black water. 

“Hello?” he called out to the lake. Nothing happened. He called out once more.

Soon, bubbles started gurgling towards the surface of the water. A few heads started to bob out of the water, intrigued by a boy calling out to the lake. Stupid, he shouldn’t have done that. It was like entering a lion’s den, only to be met with doom. One of the ghosts had slowly floated to the lakeside, revealing her hideous self to Jeno. Jeno gulped nervously. He was already breaking into a sweat. 

“Looking for trouble, aren’t you?” a raspy voice called out. Although her tangled dark hair was dripping over her pale face, Jeno could see a sinister smile peeking through. The ghost was getting nearer towards him. As much as he wanted to run, his legs were stiff, entranced by a cruel spell set by the water ghost. How could he forget? Water ghosts were like sirens, calling out to unlucky victims to join in their miserable fate.

Jeno was at a loss of words. His jaw was shut tight at the tremendous amount of fear starting to build in him. He was in a state of terror, trepidation climbing all over him. The ghost must have noticed his trembling as she started to caress her fingers along Jeno’s chest. 

“Care to join me?” the ghost invited. She latched her arms around Jeno’s shoulder, leading him towards the water. This was it, the ghost was luring Jeno towards his death. Soon, Jeno would join the lost spirits floating around in the water. Jeno lost control of his body as he started stepping slowly towards the lake. Any minute now Donghyuck, he thought. What if Donghyuck was too far away to notice him heading towards his impending doom? He knew he should have rejected his offer from the start. How stupid of him to entrust his whole life into a mysterious stranger he had just met. 

As Jeno was about to step foot into the water, a yelp reverberated throughout the air. All the floating heads in the water disappeared completely into the abyss of darkness below. Donghyuck had appeared out of nowhere, his hand yanking the hair of the female water ghost. Jeno gasped as he was released from the ghost’s grasp. He collapsed down, recollecting his lost breath. 

“Let go of me you grim reaper!” the ghost screamed, a chilling sound through the air. Her hands flailed in the air as she tried to rid of the hands pulling at her long wet hair, into no avail. Donghyuck was strong.

With little to no effort, Donghyuck sat the ghost down and tied her hands with a string. The ghost was now completely unable to move. He made sure to hold a firm grip on her shoulder so that she wouldn’t escape. 

“Relax, I’m not a grim reaper,” Donghyuck tried to calm her down. “I’m here to help you.”

The ghost turned to face Jeno, “You human! You lead me to him! You’re going to get this!” she screeched. Jeno flinched, he was startled by the sudden threat. Donghyuck moved in front of Jeno, obscuring the ghost from looking at Jeno. The ghost’s lips drew back in a snarl. It took him a few minutes of struggle for the ghost to give up and finally quiet down. 

Donghyuck sighed, exhausted. “Please, this is not going to be easy, but I’m here to resolve any grudges you have.” 

The ghost narrowed her eyes towards Donghyuck. “How do I know you’re not a grim reaper? You’re not a human.”

“If I was a grim reaper, I would have dragged you to my tea shop and forced you to drink some tea,” The ghost’s mouth set into a hard line. As if she was going to believe in that ridiculous lie. Jeno thought so too, but he had to remind himself that with Donghyuck, anything is possible.

“He’s not a grim reaper,” Jeno reassured the ghost. “If he was, I wouldn’t be near him either.”

There was a point in what he said. The ghost stopped trying to break free. She then nodded, a sign that she was giving in. If this boy could solve her grudge, then maybe it was time for her to move on. Donghyuck noticed she had calmed down, so he untied her cautiously, enough for her to be a bit more comfortable but not enough for her to escape. “Tell me about yourself,” he started. 

The ghost sat cross-legged on the grass, both Donghyuck and Jeno facing her. “My name is Park Sooyoung. I used to work as a journalist.” Donghyuck and Jeno listened to her attentively.

“I was investigating a case resolving slush funds owned by renowned politician Chairman Park. His party found out that I was on to them so they decided to kill me and toss my body here.”

“Isn’t he running for mayor?” Jeno butted in. He remembered seeing it somewhere in the news. 

“I have some documents hidden in a locker in a subway station downtown.” The ghost continued. 

“Is there a lot of money in there?” Donghyuck interrupted.

“Yes, there is,” the ghost replied, a bit half-heartedly. A soft ’sweet’ could be heard from Donghyuck whispering to himself.

“I heard he’s officiating an event this weekend,” Donghyuck said.

“How do you know that?” Jeno asked. Even he didn’t know much about politics. He just wasn’t interested, only happening to see it in the news sometimes whenever his mother watched television.

“I read newspapers, remember?” Donghyuck’s expression contorted as if it was the most obvious fact in the world.

“If you expose him and kill him, then I’ll move on.” the ghost ended her explanation.

Without giving it much thought, Donghyuck agreed to her proposition. It was as if he was used to doing these sorts of things. “Deal.” 

However, Jeno was worried about the killing part, and also Donghyuck’s seemingly guilt-free quick agreement. 

*

“So that’s where you get your money from,” Jeno commented as Donghyuck stuffed the items in his bag. They had just secured the documents from the locker in the subway station. The ghost had given them the password beforehand.

“Hustle, baby, hustle,” Donghyuck rubbed his index finger against his thumb, repeating the same action that induced Jeno to cover his mouth previously.

Jeno didn’t really need to get involved. His job was just to merely attract ghosts for Donghyuck. But it felt nice knowing that he was involved in some high risk exposé shit. He also wanted to see Donghyuck in action so he asked Donghyuck to go to the station with him after school. Donghyuck was unwilling at first, saying that he could go there immediately after their settlement with the ghost, but Jeno practically had to beg for Donghyuck to wait for him, which Donghyuck eventually inclined.

“What are you going to do with the documents?” Jeno asked, curiosity getting the best of him.

“Oh, I know a reporter or two. They would kill to get information like this,” Donghyuck waved the bag in the air. He hummed a soft tune as they walked. He seemed comfortable with what he was about to do.

“Are you really going to do it?” Jeno asked. His eyebrows creased in worry.

“Do what?” Donghyuck replied in mock innocence. He knew what Jeno meant but he just wanted to goad the heck out of him.

“You know, k-word him,” Jeno whispered quietly.

“Hmm? K-word? I don’t know that. Kiss him? Maybe,” Donghyuck teased, earning a loud smack on his back from Jeno.

“Kill! Ugh, why do I even put up with you?” Jeno groaned out of frustration.

“Funny, everyone keeps on saying that to me,” Donghyuck pondered aloud.

“So are you really going to do it or not?” concern visibly etched on Jeno’s face. He was really bothered about it. Who was Jeno telling Donghyuck how to carry out his own job? If anything, he can only persuade him, but it was up to Donghyuck to make the final decision. Even if someone really deserved it, he believed that they should be punished, but not with taking their life away, except for maybe a few circumstances. He truly was too innocent for this world.

Donghyuck continued humming flippantly. “Maybe,” he sing-songed.

Deep down, Jeno really hoped he didn’t mean it.

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Feel free to let me know how you feel in the comments! I'll be updating the next chapter very soon!


End file.
